Help! Aggressive baby!
by Adara
ORIGINAL MESSAGE:
I am having a few problems with my nine week old maltese. She is of course very playful and chews and nibbles while she is playing. I don't let her chew my hands, and I give her the proper things to gnaw on. When she bites very hard, however, I try to correct her--but, she won't submit to ANY kind of correction. I tried to verbally chastise her , but loud "NO"s do not faze her, and if one tries to tap her on the nose or hold her mouth shut when she is biting hard, she only reacts with extreme aggression, biting even harder and growling.
DISCUSSION:
Hi Adara - 9 weeks old is really young. I got Bailey a little over 11 weeks, and he didn't really have the teeth he has now - I used bitter apple cream on my hands and spray on everything else. I wouldn't let him see me put it on or spray it on the furniture because I didn't want him to hate me. Now he is pretty good except when I instigate him. There is a great article on the MO home page about puppy biting.
Mary & Bailey
hi Adara, In class alot of my students have this problem
with their puppies. I usually suggest that they assume a
dominant position over their puppies. Take your baby and
flip her on her back, let out a low steady growl until she turns
her head away from you or breaks eye contact. 9 weeks seems young to be away from her litter. She just needs to establish the boundries she would have learned within her litter had she stayed with them a little longer. Good luck!!!
jade
I had the same problem with Flip when he was a baby. He only wanted to play with your hands and he always bit too hard. What we did to correct this was to get a puppet (a hairy crow). He now knows that he is only allowed to bite hard when you have the puppet on your hand. It allowed him to continue to play the way that he wanted, yet it taught him that that was the only time he could bite a hand. teri, the flip and his daddy
teri, the flip and his daddy
When you say that she is unfazed by telling her NO, does that mean that you get no reaction at all? Is it possible that the baby is hearing impaired? I must also say that if you tapped my nose and held my mouth shut, I would react aggressively also. When I was training my deaf puppy, our trainer told me to "gently" tug on the fleshy part on the underside of her jaw. He told me that the puppies' mother will do this when she is trying to wean them (after develop sharp little teeth). It worked for us and my deaf puppy is now over 8 years old and has been one of the biggest joys of my life. My dogs have always trained with positive reinforcement, I don't believe in the "other" approach.
Judka
Thanks for all the advice--but I've tried some of it already. I tried bitter apple before--She seemed to really enjoy licking it off my hands. I know she is young; I got her at six weeks(both the vet and the breeder told me she was old enough at the time, but I know better now.) Also, she was the only one of the litter--could that contribute to stubbornness? I know for a fact she is not deaf (she comes when called), and she does SOMETIMES stop with a verbal reprimand, but not often. Of course, I lavish positive reinforcement on her when she is behaving properly and responding to me, but I do want her to be able to understand a correction, too. I have two Labradors, and they yield to me as alpha quite well. Believe me, I try to use non-physical means of correction, but Abby is just not impressed with my yipping and growling when she hurts me biting.
Adara
Adara, I think you are getting some good suggestions. Because your puppy is so young, you must teach as the mother dog would have. There is a book in the Foster and Smith catalog or others called: Mother Knows Best, the Natural Way to Train a Dog. Perhaps this will help you. This site is great for infomation and Comet is living proof of my learning. Learning is an on-going process for both Comet and me! Best wishes with your new pupppy!
Halen
Adara, could you give a little more info please? What age did you get the puppy? If the puppy stayed with his mom and possibly father until at least 7 weeks, she should have learned appropriate doggie language. I do remember discussing single puppy litters with a (more knowledgeable than me) friend once and yes it could make a difference that she was a single puppy since she didn't have as many litter mates to play with and learn from. When you picked her up did you notice how she interacted with mom and/or dad? Did either discipline her and did she accept the discipline? Try to find friends with friendly adult dogs and/or healthy puppies to socialize her with. Do as much socialization to new situations as possible without compromising exposure to puppy diseases.
After asking all these questions I must say that this sounds like perfectly normal behavior from an active puppy. I am having similar trials with my 11 week old puppy. She will respond to a light tap under the chin and no by barking at me then trying to bite again then another rap and No from me. Then eventually she will lick me instead of biting (after 3 or 4 reps) and I praise her. The 2 minutes later she tries again. Try to get the correction in before she bites you. this will help. You know she will do it so be prepared. I think time and consistency are the keys. Mine is also tugging on our pants as I walk. I figure its my fault since she's just living up to her name (heehee). Also, I'm having to train my husband the correct timing of correction (saying no) and praise. He's convinced she will never learn. I think it just takes time. Be patient and consistent and maybe try an obedience class if you're still having trouble. She's not too young for a class that uses positive reinforcement. Just make sure that the school is good about checking shot records for the puppies/dogs. Good Luck.
Mary and Mischief
Positive reinforcement isnt just for when she does the right thing and reprimand for when she doesnt please you! She will learn quickly if you treat her like her mother would. Let your hand go limp for a couple of seconds, if she doesnt stop, then frighten her with a shart "ouch" & low growl. That is exactly what her mother would have taught her! Most definitely, you must take the dominant position! Putting her on the floor on her side, feet away from you, holding her scruff & tummy, and growling in a low tone will help you establish the alpha position. Doesnt sound like she is being stubborn - seems like she simply needs to understand who is boss and what is expected of her. Good luck! :)
BeeGee
Hello, Adana, I have known several owners of Maltese who have gotten their puppies very young. Although I do not encourage it, once it is done, you now need to be advised on how to teach your puppy accordingly. When I was first confronted with it, I read everything and found that the information I found was really not for puppies that left the litter at 6 weeks (which was the situation for most of these people). I firmly believe the training for puppies that have been removed this young is different than that for older puppies removed after the proper mother&sibling socialization period. ( Jay, could you please forward my e-mail address on to this owner only? ) Adana, please feel free to contact me and we can discuss positive techniques you can use for your little one.Best of luck!
Young Jin
Hi Adara,My Mugs used to do the same thing, but he was around 9 weeks. He broke my skin twice. I had to "Plink" him in the nose (not to hard) at the same time I said a very big "NO". Only 2 times. It took him by surprise and believe it or not they know when you are really angry at them. After you discipline, don't look at them. My mom used to "Plink" me on my ear to get my attention. I also worked.
Good luck
Debra & Mugsey
Hi Adara,I have read previous posts about puppies biting or licking the hands as an annoying habit. There have been many theories as to why they do it and how to correct the behavior. My Frosti was doing the same thing. I have found that if I wash my hands thoroughly with soap he is much less inclined to chew or lick my hands. I noticed that if I thought about it I could identify that I had not washed my hands thoroughly after handling food - eating potato chips, popcorn or even a sandwich. It has led me to believe that if we make real sure that there is no lingering food odor on the hands our little one may be much less likely to chew or lick. I wonder if anyone else agrees with this theory?
Anne G.
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